1937 United States Senate special election in Arkansas

Arkansas United States Senate special election, 1937
	October 19, 1937
	October 19, 1937
Senator before election; Joseph T. Robinson; Democratic	Elected Senator ; John E. Miller[a 1]; Democratic

The 1937 Arkansas special senatorial election was held on October 19, 1937 following the death of longtime Democratic Senator Joe T. Robinson. Robinson was a powerful senator, staunch Democrat, and strong supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and was instrumental in passing many New Deal programs through the Senate. Arkansas was essentially a one-party state during the Solid South period; the Democratic Party controlled all aspects of state and local office. Recently elected Democratic Governor of Arkansas Carl E. Bailey initially considered appointing himself to finish Robinson's term, but later acceded to a nomination process by the Democratic Central Committee, avoiding a public primary but breaking a campaign process. Avoiding the primary so angered the public and establishment Democrats to coalesce behind longtime Democrat John E. Miller as an independent, forcing a general election.

The 1937 special election was a public battle in a long-standing war between establishment politicians (Arkansas's "Old Guard" Democrats), conservative Democrats that repudiated the growing role of the United States government during the Progressive era, especially under Franklin D. Roosevelt, and a growing populist and reform movement. Future governor Homer Adkins led the efforts to oppose Bailey, harboring a personal grudge since their time in the Pulaski County Courthouse. Voters ultimately rejected Bailey's power grab and handily elected Miller to fill the unexpired term. Miller would serve in the term until 1941, retiring to become a judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. The remainder of the term would be filled by Lloyd Spencer (appointed), who did not stand election in 1942.

Vacancy

FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Robinson in 1933

Joe T. Robinson served in the US Senate since 1913, and as Democratic minority leader since 1922. He became majority leader when the Democrats took the Senate in the realigning 1932 elections, known as the genesis of the New Deal coalition. Robinson was a fierce ally of Democratic presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt, and supported many of the progressive policies of Theodore Roosevelt.[4] After his abrupt passing in July 1937 at the age of 64, a large void opened in state politics.[5]

Setting

During the Solid South period, Arkansas was ruled by the Democratic party. A Democratic primary win was tantamount to election; most policy or personal political fights were fought months ahead of the general election, or behind closed doors in party meetings. The New Deal had brought millions of government dollars to the poor state, creating a group of politicians more loyal to the political patronage system from the Federal level.[6] In Arkansas, patronage had been operated by Robinson, creating a league of bureaucrats and officials owing their positions to Robinson known as the Old Guard Democrats.[7] Moderate Democrats, political outsiders, and opponents of the Old Guard Democrats like Harvey Parnell rejected the cronyism and corruption passed through the patronage system and often sought reform, but struggled to reform the system, even from the Governor's office.[8]

Candidates

Shortly after Robinson's death, rumors about who would fill the remaining 5 ¹⁄₂-year term began in Arkansas newspapers.[5]

Carl Bailey, a lawyer originally from the Missouri Bootheel, had won the 1936 Arkansas gubernatorial election. Famous for having rejected a $50,000 bribe from infamous New York City mobster and boss of the Genovese crime family Lucky Luciano while he was Arkansas Attorney General,[9] Bailey was an antiestablishment politician who ran on replacing government patronage positions with qualified people hired on a merit basis.[10] Like most Arkansas Democrats at the time, Bailey strongly supported the New Deal, which was wildly popular in a poor agricultural state still recovering from the Great Depression.[11] Bailey's antiestablishment credentials and calls for reform in state offices made him unpopular with the establishment, "Old Guard Democrats" who also supported (and in many cases derived their livelihoods from) the New Deal. Conservative Democrats also disagreed with Bailey, whose expanding state government reversed previous governor J. Marion Futrell's policies of state retrenchment in the face of Federal expansion.[12][13]

Despite a narrow victory in 1936, Bailey had a sufficient mandate to create a civil service commission (the first in a Southern state), reorganize the Welfare Department to redirect federal aid more efficiently, and doubled funding for school districts.[14]

Declined

Homer Adkins, Collector for Internal Revenue in Arkansas[5]
Claude A. Fuller,[5] U.S. House of Representatives member representing Arkansas's 3rd district
Jack Holt,[5] Attorney General of Arkansas
John L. McClellan,[5] U.S. House of Representatives member representing Arkansas's 6th district
Vincent Miles of Fort Smith[5]

Election

The first question was whether the vacancy would be filled by a Democratic primary or nomination of the Arkansas Democratic Central Committee.[5] At a meeting of a Democratic Party subcommittee to resolve this question, there was strong support for a primary among rank-and-file party members, but Committee nomination was favored by the officeholders and politicians. Party leaders favored Bailey, who said "my enemies may fear the worst" at the subcommittee meeting. At the meeting, allegations were made that Homer Adkins had ordered his staff to circulate petitions in their home counties across the state to generate support for a primary in opposition to Bailey's nomination.[15]

On July 23, 1937, the Committee named Bailey as the Democratic candidate for US Senate, almost assuring his victory in the special election.[16]

Many of the efficiencies created by Bailey's welfare reorganization came at the expense of the bureaucrats appointed through the patronage system. Adkins was Robinson's man in Arkansas, dispensing patronage to loyalists through various New Deal agencies.[17] In addition to Bailey's open threats to disrupt the Robinson political machine, Adkins also harbored a personal dislike of Bailey dating back to the time they shared together in the Pulaski County Courthouse.

Results

Arkansas special senate election, 1937[18]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	John E. Miller	65,802	60.5
	Democratic	Carl E. Bailey	43,125	39.5
Total votes			108,927	100.0
	Democratic hold

Notes

Though he ran as an independent, Miller was so clearly a Democrat that most records indicate both candidates as Democrats, including the Official Congressional Directory.[3]

References

"Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.
"Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.
Joint Committee on Printing, Office of Congressional Directory (December 21, 1937). Official Congressional Directory. 75th Congress, 3d Session. Compiled by C.B. Deane (1st ed.). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. p. 6. LCCN 06035330. OCLC 1114304889. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
"Governors" (1995), pp. 140-141.
Staff of the NWA Times (July 15, 1937). "Arkansas will bury 'Joe T.' Next Sunday". Northwest Arkansas Times. 77 (201) (Evening ed.). Fayetteville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. pp. 1, 6. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.
"Arkansas" (2002), pp. 331-332.
"Arkansas" (2002), pp. 332.
"Arkansas" (2002), p. 332.
"Governors" (1995), pp. 192-193.
"Governors" (1995), p. 193.
"Arkansas" (2002), pp. 331-332.
"Arkansas" (2002), p. 321.
"Governors" (1995), p. 185.
"Johnson III" (2019), p. 19.
Staff of the NWA Times (July 22, 1937). "No Activity at Meeting of Subcommittee". Northwest Arkansas Times. 77 (207) (Evening ed.). Fayetteville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. pp. 1, 4. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.
Staff of the Blytheville Courier News (July 23, 1937). "Committee names Bailey as Candidate". Blytheville Courier News. 34 (108). Blytheville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. p. 1. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.
"Johnson III" (2019), p. 18.
"Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.

Arnold, Morris S.; DeBlack, Thomas A.; Sabo III, George; Whayne, Jeannie M. (2002). Arkansas: A narrative history (1st ed.). Fayetteville, Arkansas: The University of Arkansas Press. ISBN 1-55728-724-4. OCLC 49029558.
Donovan, Timothy Paul; Gatewood, Willard B.; Whayne, Jeannie M., eds. (1995). The Governors of Arkansas: Essays in Political Biography (2 ed.). University of Arkansas Press. ISBN 1-55728-331-1. OCLC 31782171.
Heard, Alexander; Strong, Donald S. (1950). Southern Primaries and Elections, 1920-1949. University, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. OCLC 500982.
Johnson III, Ben F. (2019). Arkansas in Modern America Since 1930 (2nd ed.). Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press. ISBN 978-1-68226-102-6. LCCN 2019000981.

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[4] Though he ran as an independent, Miller was so clearly a Democrat that most records indicate both candidates as Democrats, including the Official Congressional Directory.[3]

[1] "Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.

[2] "Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.

[3] Joint Committee on Printing, Office of Congressional Directory (December 21, 1937). Official Congressional Directory. 75th Congress, 3d Session. Compiled by C.B. Deane (1st ed.). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. p. 6. LCCN 06035330. OCLC 1114304889. Retrieved December 15, 2019.

[5] "Governors" (1995), pp. 140-141.

[can-6] Staff of the NWA Times (July 15, 1937). "Arkansas will bury 'Joe T.' Next Sunday". Northwest Arkansas Times. 77 (201) (Evening ed.). Fayetteville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. pp. 1, 6. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.

[7] "Arkansas" (2002), pp. 331-332.

[8] "Arkansas" (2002), pp. 332.

[9] "Arkansas" (2002), p. 332.

[10] "Governors" (1995), pp. 192-193.

[11] "Governors" (1995), p. 193.

[12] "Arkansas" (2002), pp. 331-332.

[13] "Arkansas" (2002), p. 321.

[14] "Governors" (1995), p. 185.

[15] "Johnson III" (2019), p. 19.

[16] Staff of the NWA Times (July 22, 1937). "No Activity at Meeting of Subcommittee". Northwest Arkansas Times. 77 (207) (Evening ed.). Fayetteville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. pp. 1, 4. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.

[17] Staff of the Blytheville Courier News (July 23, 1937). "Committee names Bailey as Candidate". Blytheville Courier News. 34 (108). Blytheville: Fayetteville Democrat Publishing Company. p. 1. ISSN 1066-3355. LCCN 88051011. OCLC 18117496 – via NewspaperARCHIVE.

[18] "Johnson III" (2019), p. 18.

[19] "Elections" (1950), pp. 32-33.

Elections in Arkansas
General	1844 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1900 1902 1903 1904 1906 1907 1908 1910 1912 1913 1914 1916 1917 1918 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1926 1927 1928 1930 1932 1933 1934 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1942 1943 1944 1946 1949 1950 1952 1953 1954 1956 1958 1959 1960 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1972 1973 1974 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020
AR Governor	1836 1840 1844 1848 1848 1852 1856 1860 1862 1864 1868 1872 1874 1878 1880 1882 1884 1886 1888 1890 1892 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1910 1912 1913 S 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
U.S. President	1836 1840 1844 1848 1852 1856 1860 1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020
U.S. Senate	Class 2: 1833 1839–40 1848 S 1853 1859 1868 S 1870 1876 1883 1885 S 1889 1895 1901 1907 1913 S 1913 1918 1924 1930 1936 1937 S 1942 1948 1954 1960 1966 1972 1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008 2014 2020 Class 3: 1837 1843 1845 S 1849 1855 1861 1867 1873 1879 1881 S 1885 1891 1897 1903 1909 1914 1920 1926 1932 1938 1944 1949 S 1950 1956 1962 1968 1974 1980 1986 1992 1998 2004 2010 2016
U.S. House	1837 1838 1840 1842 1844 1846 1848 1851 1853 1854 1856 1858 1860 1868 1870 1872 1874 1876 1878 1880 1882 1884 1886 1888 1890 1892 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 (4th S) 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 (6th S) 1962 1964 1966 (4th S) 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020
'S,' denotes special election See also: Political party strength in Arkansas

Notable third party performances in United States elections
* Third party is endorsed by a major party
Presidential (since 1832)	1832 1848 1856 1860 1872* 1892 1912 1924 1948 1960 1968 1980 1992 1996
Senatorial (since 1950)	Alabama 1950 New Hampshire 1950 California 1952 Maine 1952 New York 1952 North Dakota 1952 Virginia 1952 South Carolina 1954 (Democratic Write-In) Virginia 1954 Utah 1958 Vrginia 1958 Virginia 1960 Virginia 1964 Mississippi 1966 Virginia 1966 Virginia 1966 Alabama 1968 Alaska 1968 Maryland 1968 New York 1968 Connecticut 1970 Mississippi 1970 New York 1970 Virginia 1970 Louisiana 1972 Florida 1974 Hawaii 1974 New York 1974 Utah 1974 Minnesota 1976 Virginia 1976 Alabama 1978 Arkansas 1978 Maine 1978 Mississippi 1978 New York 1980 Washington 1982 Tennessee 1984 Virginia 1990 Alaska 1992 Arizona 1992 Hawaii 1992 Louisiana 1992 Ohio 1992 Arizona 1994 Minnesota 1994 Ohio 1994 Vermont 1994 Virginia 1994 Alaska 1996 Minnesota 1996 Arizona 2000 Massachusetts 2000 Minnesota 2000 Alaska 2002 Kansas 2002 Massachusetts 2002 Mississippi 2002 Oklahoma 2002 Virginia 2002 Oklahoma 2004 Connecticut 2006 Indiana 2006 Maine 2006 Vermont 2006* Arkansas 2008 Idaho 2008 Minnesota 2008 Oregon 2008 Alaska 2010 (Republican Write-In) Florida 2010 Indiana 2010 South Carolina 2010 Utah 2010 Indiana 2012 Maine 2012 Maryland 2012 Missouri 2012 Montana 2012 Vermont 2012* Kansas 2014 South Dakota 2014 Wyoming 2014 Alaska 2016 Arizona 2016 Idaho 2016 Indiana 2016 Kansas 2016 Maine 2018 New Mexico 2018 Vermont 2018* Alaska 2020* Arkansas 2020 Minnesota 2020 Nebraska 2020
Gubernatorial (since 1950)	Tennessee 1950 Maine 1952 Vermont 1952 Tennessee 1954 Nebraska 1956 Texas 1956 Utah 1956 Oklahoma 1958 Tennessee 1958 North Dakota 1960 Tennessee 1962 Virginia 1965 Alabama 1966 Georgia 1966 Idaho 1966 Maryland 1966 New York 1966 Tennessee 1966 Alabama 1970 Arkansas 1970 New Hampshire 1970 New York 1970 Mississippi 1971 New Hampshire 1972 Texas 1972 Washington 1972 Virginia 1973 Maine 1974 Nebraska 1974 Nevada 1974 Texas 1974 Vermont 1976 Alaska 1978 California 1978 Maine 1978 Rhode Island 1978 Alaska 1982 Arizona 1982 Hawaii 1982 Alaska 1986 Arizona 1986 Illinois 1986 Maine 1986 Oklahoma 1986 Vermont 1986 Utah 1988 Alaska 1990 Connecticut 1990 Kansas 1990 Maine 1990 New York 1990 Oklahoma 1990 Oregon 1990 Utah 1992 West Virginia 1992 Alaska 1994 Connecticut 1994 Hawaii 1994 Maine 1994 New Mexico 1994 Oklahoma 1994 Pennsylvania 1994 Rhode Island 1994 Vermont 1994 Alaska 1998 Maine 1998 Minnesota 1998 New York 1998 Pennsylvania 1998 Rhode Island 1998 Kentucky 1999 New Hampshire 2000 Vermont 2000 Arizona 2002 California 2002 Maine 2002 Minnesota 2002 New Mexico 2002 New York 2002 Oklahoma 2002 Vermont 2002 Wisconsin 2002 Alaska 2006 Illinois 2006 Maine 2006 Massachusetts 2006 Minnesota 2006 Texas 2006 Louisiana 2007 Vermont 2008 New Jersey 2009 Colorado 2010 Idaho 2010 Maine 2010 Massachusetts 2010 Minnesota 2010 Rhode Island 2010 Wyoming 2010 Kentucky 2011 Virginia 2013 Alaska 2014* Hawaii 2014 Maine 2014 Rhode Island 2014 Wyoming 2014 Maine 2018 Kansas 2018 Indiana 2020 Vermont 2020*
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